Biography Charles Cameron Kingston
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Thomas Kennedy (1859-1929) Charles Cameron Kingston (1850-1908) Member for Moira (Victoria) 1901-1906 Member for South Australia 1901-1903 Member for Adelaide (South Australia) 1903-1908 homas Kennedy was born in Moonee Kennedy was Chairman of the Victorian Closer harles Kingston was born in Adelaide, passage of the Commonwealth of Australia TPonds, Victoria. Kennedy was a farmer Settlement Board in 1910-15 and then CSouth Australia, where he was admitted Bill through the British Parliament. who served on the Yarrawonga Shire Council returned to farming and grazing. Apart from to the Bar in 1873, and appointed as a Queen’s 1889-94 and was Shire President 1892-94. an unsuccessful attempt to win the state Counsel in 1888. Entering the South Kingston was appointed Minister for Trade In 1893 he contested the Victorian Legislative seat of Benalla in 1917, he did not return Australian House of Assembly as member and Customs in the first Federal Ministry in Assembly seat of Benalla and Yarrawonga at to politics. for West Adelaide in 1881, Kingston became January 1901. In March he was elected as a a by-election at which he and his opponent a dominant figure in South Australian colonial Protectionist to the House of Representatives polled the same number of votes, 753. The politics in the 1890s, and in the Liberal to represent South Australia. After South returning officer’s casting vote went against reformist government as Attorney-General Australia was divided into federal electorates, Kennedy who appealed, and in a new poll won and Premier 1893-99. he was elected unopposed to the seat of by 60 votes. He held the seat until 1901. Adelaide in 1903, and again in 1906. As Kingston was a great advocate of federation. Minister for Trade and Customs Kingston had In 1901 Kennedy was elected as a He represented South Australia at the Federal the huge task of guiding the first federal tariff Protectionist to represent the seat of Moira Council of Australasia in Hobart, in 1889, through the Parliament. He resigned from the in the House of Representatives. Although a having secured South Australia’s entry to the ministry in 1903 over industrial arbitration committed Protectionist, Kennedy occasionally Council in the previous year. He assisted legislation, and although invited to join asserted his independence by voting against Sir Samuel Griffith and Andrew Inglis Clark Watson’s Labor government in 1904, did not the government in the first Parliament. to draft the Constitution Bill at the National hold ministerial office again. Following an electoral distribution in 1906, Australasian Convention in 1891. As President Kennedy failed to win the House of of the Australasian Federal Convention of Kingston died in office in May 1908. He had Representatives seat of Echuca by a 1897-98 he played an important role in been appointed a Privy Councillor in 1897, narrow margin. reconciling differences between the large and and had declined a knighthood. small colonies on such matters as the powers of the Senate. In 1900 Kingston accompanied Deakin and Barton to London to monitor the The state of South Australia did not divide into electoral divisions for the purposes of the first The electorate of Moira was named after a local property. federal election. South Australia, as a whole, was also represented in the first House of Representatives by: Sir John Langdon Bonython Frederick William Holder Alexander Poynton Patrick McMahon Glynn Egerton Lee Batchelor Vaiben Louis Solomon.